Where to start

Today we test the velocity of the AirForce International Orion. Many of you are new to precharged pneumatics (PCP), so let me show you how I select which pellets to test when I don’t know the airgun. I start by looking at the advertised velocity, which for this rifle in .22 caliber is said to be around 800 f.p.s. Knowing how AirForce states things like this, that number is obtained with a reasonable lead pellet, so I will guess it was a Hobby, though they might have shot something heavier. Still my velocities are going to be between 700 and 800 f.p.s. and that tells me I should start with medium weight lead pellets — something in the 13 to 16-grain range. Once we know more we can go from there.

Magazine height

Before I continue, a reader asked about the height of the mag above the top of the receiver, because that will affect the scope ring height. The owner’s manual I am reading suggests a ring height of at least 21mm, which is a high ring. I hope that answers your question.

Load the mag

The Orion mag is spring-loaded, but its loaded from the bottom and not the top. The pellets are loaded skirt-first as the spring-loaded clear top is advanced. Because this isn’t the norm, I will comment on the ease of loading for each pellet. Let’s get started!

JSB Exact RS

The first pellet that falls in my arbitrary weight range is the JSB Exact RS that weighs 13.43 grains. RS pellets are pretty accurate in most air rifles, too, which is a bonus. This pellet fell into the mag easily.

I loaded the magazine with all 13 rounds, which is what the .22 magazine holds. In a moment you will see why that was a good thing. The average velocity for all 13 rounds was 999 f.p.s.. But let me show you the string and you will see something interesting.

What you are seeing from the string shown above is the fill was a trifle high. High enough to slow the initial shots just a smidgeon. Don’t fixate on that, though, because the differences are too small to matter that much. Fill the rifle to the 200 bar (the manual says that’s 3000 psi, but it’s really 2900 psi) the manual calls for. Just be aware this may happen.

The spread for this 13-shot string was 35 f.p.s. If you look, the spread is the same over the first 10 shots. That’s high for a PCP, but until we get to the 50-yard range, we will reserve judgement.

At the average velocity this pellet is generating 29.77 foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle. That’s pretty good for such a light pellet.

One final comment — this rifle is much faster than the description says. This is easily a 1000 f.p.s. air rifle in .22 caliber.

Firing behavior and sound

The rifle recoils noticeably when it fires. That’s because of the power it is producing. It is also remarkably quiet for that much power. It sounds about like a powerful breakbarrel, but certainly not a mega-magnum springer.

Punky, my tuxedo cat, slept in my office through most of the testing. And Dale Evans, my female calico who is very sensitive to sounds, never raised a peep. She was asleep in the room across the hall. She is usually parked outside my office, wailing her head off until I stop.

We learn more

One of AirForce’s dealers emailed them some test targets with results from 30 yards. They were 5-shot groups and they were shot with the JSB Exact Jumbo Heavy that weighs 18.1-grains. Although the groups are only 5 shots and therefore not conclusive, they do show remarkable potential for accuracy, so I tested that pellet next. It also fell into the mag easily.

JSB Exact Jumbo Heavy

Eight pellets averaged 899 f.p.s. Why only 8? Because I had a double feed, which seems easy to do with the Orion if you do not cock the bolt deliberately. Here is the string.

This heavier pellet produced 32.54 foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle. That’s what we would expect from a heavier pellet in a PCP. Incidentally, my velocities match those the AirForce dealer got with a different .22 caliber Orion.

The spread for this string was 17 f.p.s. The rifle seems to still be on the power curve, because the velocities rose within the string. To check that I fired 2 more RS pellets.

Shot………..Velocity
1…………….1010
2…………….1009

That’s conclusive proof the rifle is still on the power curve. To this point, 25 pellets have been fired on one fill.

Crosman Premiers

Next up were Crosman Premiers — another good .22 caliber pellet, and they are back in my arbitrary weight range. These weigh in-between the first two pellets. I would expect velocities in the mid to high-900s. And this pellet fell into the mag easily, too.

Even if you don’t own a chronograph, this string should tell you the rifle began to fall off the power curve almost immediately. Perhaps the first 3 shots were still on the curve, then the slow decline began. This is why a chronograph is such an important piece of equipment for the airgunner.

At the average velocity of the string shown above, Crosman Premiers generated 29.76 foot-pounds at the muzzle, but since the rifle is falling off the curve, let’s take 980 f.p.s. as a more realistic average. At that speed the rifle generates 30.5 foot-pounds. I think that’s about right.

Just to see whether I’m right, let’s look at the velocity of two RS pellets, now that 35 shots have been fired on this fill.

Shot………..Velocity
1……………..972
2……………..975

Yes, it has dropped off the curve, but the decline is slow! I fired 37 shots through this rifle and they all did well. Therefore in my opinion, there are easily 2 good 13-shot magazines per fill, which is 26 shots total. That gives a large safety buffer for hunters. if you’re a plinker, 3 magazines are possible.

Loading

Speaking of the magazine, I would want a second magazine with this rifle. Loading pellets backwards (skirt first) is not a natural act, and having a second mag at the ready seems like a good plan.

Also, I know some of you will want to know how long a pellet this mag will accept, so I loaded an H&N Baracuda Match, to find out. This pellet fell into the mag easily.

Look at all the room in front of this H&N Baracuda Match.

Trigger pull

The trigger is very light, breaking at 1 lb. 1 oz. It is 2-stage but stage 1 is heavy enough to mask stage 2, so it might feel like a single-stage pull until you get used to it. I think it will be very easy to shoot with.

Power adjustability

I told you the Orion’s power is adjustable, and it is. But I think I want to test accuracy before messing with that, because I don’t know where this rifle is, in terms of accuracy. As I told you, the Orion’s power adjustment is meant to tune the rifle to a specific pellet, so let’s find that pellet before we charge in and mess things up.

Discussion

The Orion has good and bad points. The power, nice trigger, stock adjustability, shot count per fill, slender stock profile, adjustable comb and low discharge sound are all plusses. How you load the magazine and the possibility of a double feed are things you have to watch out for.

Will the Orion give the Benjamin Marauder a run for the money? If the accuracy I see in the dealer test proves out, I think it will.

Is this rifle regulated? If not, why not?
That 2nd mag will cost $ 59.95? That’s highway robbery, imo.
Special order only from PA?
Is this a new designed airgun, or rebated current setup?
See ya in Findlay soon!!!

I am with you on the magazine cost. Everything else may be good,.. or even great with the rifle,.. but I would be inclined to not buy it on principle alone for the mag. cost. I have seen some that are pushing $100.00. This looks to be the (near) same type as a M-rod magazine. For a piece of plastic, that is an (obvious) slap in the face that says “we are after your money”,.. plain and simple.

Are side lever PCP cocking mechanisms’ less likely to jam or double feed?
Can anything be done with the heavy first stage of the trigger? Why no adjustable trigger? Will it “break-in” like a springer’s trigger would?

B.B.
Sorry to go off topic here, but I was wondering if a 88 gram CO2 cartridge can be left in a rifle for an extended period of time without damage to the rifle or loss of air. I am looking at a Walther Lever Action. It appears to be awesome.

So?,… What’s the view with your toes on the edge of the abyss? 😉 I can not speak to the FX brand in specific,.. but PCP’s are “cool”. Being as detailed minded as you are,.. I think that you would enjoy one. It would be cool if you could shoot that one. Then again,.. that might just push you over the edge. Shooting that one would give you a taste of the top 10% of PCP’s if I had to guess.

Hello everybody, posting from the Netherlands. I’ve been an avid reader some time now, and think it’s about time I’ll contribute some. I have the Cometa Orion, the 2016 basic model, single shot. It is the basic pcp of the same company of the Lynx. It has surprised me. Trigger was not that nice ootb, but a different (ballpoint) spring, some polishing and spacers has helped enough. After quite some trial and error, I found out that when setting the power adjuster to 925 fps with jsb jumbo 15.9 (.22) and cleaning the barrel every 1000shots the following accuracy is standard with 10 shot groups(benched, supported) 28 y.20 ” 55y .50″ and 109y about 1.5″ average , 30 good shots Max fps is 1000fps with the 15.9 but that’s way too fast. have posted a (dutch) review on it, with pics. Again, it’s no air arms but it sure shoots as accurate! BB please try with 15.9 @ 925 fps on sweet spot . Looking forward to your testing as always, best regards Munt